The Catholic Diocese of Auchi has decried the frequency at which priests in the diocese are being attacked and kidnapped, stating that eight priests have fallen victim in the last five years.......CONTINUE READING THE ARTICLE FROM THE SOURCE>>>>>
DAILY POST reports that the Bishop of the Diocese, Most Reverend Gabriel Dunia, expressed sadness while reacting to the abduction of a priest and a seminarian on Monday, 3rd February 2025, at St Peter Catholic Church, Iviukhua-Agenebode, Etsako East Local Government Area of the state.
A statement issued on behalf of Bishop Dunia by Rev. Fr Peter Egielewa, Director of Communications of the Diocese, lamented that the once peaceful Edo North Senatorial District, which houses the Diocese of Auchi, has become a business hub for kidnappers.
Dunia also lamented that the senatorial district and the diocese have become a field of the absurd, where kidnappers operate at will and at regular intervals, abducting people for ransom.
According to him, “The Catholic Diocese of Auchi, inaugurated on 22nd February 2003, only recently celebrated the twenty-second anniversary of its inauguration. However, in the last five years, over eight of our priests have been kidnapped, with one brutally murdered in 2022.”
In a statement dated 4th March 2025 and titled “Rev. Fr Philip Ekweli Attacked in the Priest’s Rectory and Kidnapped”, the church revealed that it was violently attacked by gunmen, who forcefully broke down doors and windows in both the rectory and the church, accompanied by gunfire.
The statement read in part:
“The Catholic Diocese of Auchi announces that at about 9:30 pm on Monday, 3rd March 2025, the priest’s rectory and church of St Peter Catholic Church, Iviukhua-Agenebode, Etsako East LGA of Edo State, were violently attacked by gunmen.
*”Doors and windows in both the rectory and church were pulled down, accompanied by gunshots. The local vigilantes engaged the kidnappers in a gun duel.
“However, due to the superior weapons in the kidnappers’ possession, the parish priest, Rev. Fr Philip Ekweli, was unfortunately taken away along with the major seminarian serving in the parish into the surrounding forests.”
He noted that, at present, there has been no communication from the abductors.
However, he urged all people of goodwill to join the faithful of the diocese in prayers for the victims’ safe and unharmed release.